Work continues on my new home

One of my hidden roses

I have to keep reminding myself that I have only owned my new home for just over a month, and that Rome wasn’t built in a day, but it seems to be taking a long time to get things done. Admittedly, I have picked up several new gardening clients recently so am working far more hours in a week than I was doing, and it is all physical work, so I get tired quite quickly.

Before ...

... and after

The front, or guest bedroom, is virtually finished having taken three coats of magnolia emulsion to cover the bright blue walls. I’ve also painted the ceiling and all of the woodwork (at least twice) and finally shampooed the carpet, which came up much better than I expected. During work on the room I had to make a new piece of skirting board, as there was a length missing, and do some repair work on the bedroom door which is one of those stupid hollow affairs with hardly any wood for fixings. Whoever had put the door in originally had made a right pig’s ear of installing the handle mechanism so that there was no wood to screw the handles into and only one screw on the catch plate was attached to anything. I spent a good couple of hours manufacturing bespoke bits of wood to create a new internal structure into which the various screws could be fixed!

My bedroom, at the back of the house with glorious views, is pretty much finished now, too. I wanted to paint the walls a misty green (they were pale lilac) but, when I put the paint on the wall it is more of a misty blue colour. However, I do quite like it – it’s very restful, so it will stay for the time being. Again, I have painted the ceiling, the walls three times and all of the woodwork twice and today I have shampooed the carpet. Let’s hope it comes up as well as the front bedroom!

From this ...

... to this

Meanwhile, Dave the stove man duly turned up to look at the job. He assured me that he would remove all of the necessary brickwork, install a lintel, line the chimney, board around the inside of the fireplace and supply the stove. He also said that he would completely replaster the chimney breast and alcove to give me a smooth surface to paint – all of this for an extremely reasonable price. He proposed using mock flagstones for the hearth, but I had other ideas! Some months ago, whilst out for a morning walk to the lake, about half a mile away, I discovered that someone had gone to huge lengths to fly tip a load of building materials right next to the lake. How they got it all there is a mystery as they could not get through the padlocked gate from one direction, and the other direction meant driving across a field in full view of a farmhouse! Amongst the general detritus were several biggish pieces of thick slate, such as would have been used as flooring in an expensive kitchen. My friend, Mary, and I decided that they would be ‘useful for something’, so when a hearth was required I suggested these. We duly measured them and found that three pieces would be more than enough for the job so, on Tuesday evening, we decided to ‘liberate’ them. They were quite heavy and the only way to collect them was in my four-wheeled cart that I used for markets, so we walked along the main road for about a quarter of a mile, then crossed over into a field and bumped our way across that until we met up with the track to the lake. We duly loaded the slabs onto the trolley and bungee-corded them down before repeating the process in reverse, whilst trying to look inconspicuous! When Dave and his mate, Mark, unloaded them from the back of the car they were amazed at the quality and reckoned those three pieces alone were worth £150.00! I love a bit of recycling! I did wonder whether it’s theft to remove someone else’s fly tipping?

The cart loaded with slate

Dave and Mark did a brilliant job, bagging up all of the rubble and taking it outside, and polishing the slate so that you can see all the beautiful veining. They also removed my ‘feature wall’ for me whilst waiting for their cement and adhesives to harden. I didn’t ask them to, I’d just mentioned that I had begun to stress about it as I’d found how painful it was to try and remove it with a bolster and lump hammer, but they had a Kango-type drill and had it all down in about 15 minutes – I could have kissed them!

... and this ...

... to this!

Last Sunday I made myself have the day off, as I’d been burning the candle at  both ends, so went on a foraging expedition to pick elderflowers, which seem to be everywhere at the moment. I have now made and bottled a double quantity of cordial, so that should last a little while. If I can find more bottles I may be tempted to make another batch soon.

I have still managed to control my urge to start tackling the jungle that is my garden, but I have discovered two beautiful, scented roses which is lovely – they will need some TLC later in the year to bring them back into some sort of shape, but that can all happen after I move in! Moving day is still a bit of a moveable feast – I’m heading for the first week in July, but that could change if I can’t get all the messy jobs finished and new carpets fitted downstairs.

It's a shame that I am spending a lot of this gorgeous weather decorating inside but, when I stop for a break, I realise just how lovely this spot is. I take my lunch outside and sit on my decking gazing at the fantastic view and listening to the birdsong. There are blackbirds and house sparrows close to, with the ubiquitous jackdaws and magpies in the field below me and occasionally a burst of activity in the air above as a small gang of swifts go screaming by, playing tag and twisting and turning over the fields. The absence of traffic noise is a blessing and I understand that the sunsets up here are magnificent. I'm getting quite excited (rather than anxious) about moving in, now!

My other lovely rose!